Karnataka Temple Tax: Rhetoric has started between Congress and BJP over the bill passed to collect tax from temples located in Karnataka. BJP alleged that the Siddaramaiah government wants to fill its empty treasury with temple money. Countering the allegation, Minister Ramalinga Reddy defended the state government’s move to collect revenue from temples earning a gross income of Rs 10 lakh.
Transport and Hindu Religious Endowments Minister Ramalinga Reddy said this provision is not new but has been in existence since 2003. On the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments (Amendment) Bill being passed by the Assembly, the state government said that increasing the amount of common contribution fund, inclusion of a person skilled in Vishwa Hindu temple architecture and sculpture in the management committee of notified institutions and pilgrims It was necessary to form district and state level committees to improve the temples and infrastructure for their safety.
What did Ramalinga Reddy say?
Ramalinga Reddy said that the provision is not new but has been in existence since 2003. He said that in terms of revenue in Karnataka, there are three thousand temples included in ‘C’ category, whose income is less than Rs 5 lakh and the ‘Religious Council’ does not get any money from these temples.
Reddy said the religious council is a committee to improve the temple management for the benefit of pilgrims. Temples with income between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 25 lakh fall in ‘B’ category, from where five per cent of the gross income is going to the religious council since 2003.
“What we have done now is that if the income is up to Rs 10 lakh, we have exempted it from paying to the religious council,” Reddy said. We have made a provision to collect five percent amount from such temples whose gross income is between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 1 crore.
He said, “Ten percent revenue will be collected from temples whose income is more than Rs 1 crore. This entire amount will reach the religious council.
The minister said that there are 40,000 to 50,000 priests in the state, whom the state government wants to help.
Ramalinga Reddy mentioned the priests
“If this amount reaches the religious council, we can provide them insurance cover,” he said. We want that if anything happens to them, their families should get at least Rs 5 lakh. We need Rs 7 crore to Rs 8 crore to pay the premium.
The minister said the government wants to provide scholarships to the children of temple priests, for which Rs 5 crore to Rs 6 crore would be required annually. He said that this entire amount will only benefit the temple priests, many of whom are in poor condition.
What did BJP say?
Karnataka BJP President BY Vijayendra in a post on X targeted the government over this move. He said, “The corrupt, incompetent and plundering government, under the guise of secularism, with its anti-Hindu ideology, has turned its evil eye on the revenue of temples. “Through the Hindu Religious Endowments Amendment Act, it is trying to usurp donations as well as offerings from Hindu temples and religious institutions to fill its empty coffers.”
He said the government plans to grab 10 percent of the revenue of temples with an income of more than Rs 1 crore and five percent of the revenue of temples with an income of less than Rs 5 crore.
corrupt, inept #LootSarkar with its penchant for anti Hindu ideology in the guise of secularism, has cast its evil eyes on the Temple🛕 revenues. Through the Hindu Religious Endowments amendment act, it is trying to siphon off donations as well as offerings from Hindu temples… pic.twitter.com/Vzf9RQTaP4
— Vijayendra Yediyurappa (@BYVijayendra) February 22, 2024
He said that the temple revenue should be used entirely for renovating the temples and providing facilities to the devotees and not be spent for other purposes. Vijayendra asked the government why only Hindu temples are targeted for revenue and this question has been raised by lakhs of devotees.
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